Privileges and Problems of being a Great Spirit
by Scampercat101
Summary: Matoro is now the new Great Spirit. But will everything be a walk in the park when it comes to Life Bonds? Main pairing shall be Matoro and Hahli. Please don't flame, instead please read and review!
1. Chapter 1: Power Shift

Privileges and Problems

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle. I only own Zephyr and Aurora the Kewa Falcons.

Chapter 1: Power Shift.

Matoro was only aware of the feeling that he was plummeting through the icy waterfall in Karda Nui, the Kanohi Ignika glowing with the power of his own life as it left him for the mask, the feeling of crashing on the stalagmites at the bottom…

A rude jab to the forehead woke him from his nightmare.

His eyes flashed open to see the ever-obnoxious Tohunga, Ehrye, standing by his sickbed, finger in a position that proved him to be guilty of the poke. Both Toa and Tohunga of ice let out a yell of startled shock. This, of course, caused Ehrye to lose his balance and topple backwards off the stool he'd been perched on, and Matoro to "jump" backwards and end up banging the back of his head on the headboard.

"Slag it, Ehrye! What was _that_ for? Can't a Toa get any rest?" the now considerably peeved Toa Inika of Ice asked irritably, before he realized several much more worthwhile questions and went on, "Wait, where am I? Why do I have feathers and wings? _How am I ALIVE_?"

"Woah, woah, settle down!" Ehrye said hastily, trying to avoid getting himself in trouble by causing the Turaga to investigate.

"_What is __**going on here?**_"

Ehrye winced. Frag it, too late.

Slowly he turned around. There was an extremely annoyed Turaga Dume walking towards him, having heard Matoro's panicked yelling. The fiery red Turaga cocked a brow upon seeing the busted Tohunga beside the cot and asked, "Ehrye, _what in the name of the Great Beings_ are you doing here?"

"I… uh…. Got lost?"

Dume snorted with spite. "Your track record of bullying Matoro causes me to doubt that."

It was at this point Ehrye used his last means of escaping trouble.

He fled from sheer terror.

Dume gave an exasperated sigh as he watched the troublemaking Ko-Tohunga retreating form. _Will that youngster's antics __**ever **__cease?_ he wondered.

"Umm…. Turaga Dume?"

The ruby-masked elder came to his senses at the sound of Matoro's voice. He turned around and asked, "Yes, young Toa?"

"Why _am_ I alive?"

"Mata Nui brought you back to life and made you the next Great Spirit as he passed away," Dume explained, "Which is why you have wings as well as feathers on the back of your neck and elbows."

Matoro froze and blinked once. Twice. His eyes seemed to refocus. Then, just like that, he fainted.

And Dume facepalmed…. err, maskpalmed.

••••••••

The wind blowing through the Makuta robot's remains was brutal. Too brutal for the young, malnourished Kewa falcon tiercel* as he cowered behind the "lip" of his nest. Where were Daddy and Mama? He was hungry, he was thirsty, he was cold, he was tired, but most of all, he was scared!He'd never been alone for this long!

**Thump!**

Was that a ProtoBat? Would it eat him?

**Thump!**

The nest was tilting! He had no choice…. Turning to face the lower edge of the nest, he jumped!

_**Whump!**_

His landing hurt. A lot. He hadn't expected the ground to be so rocky! But now where could he go?

A soft _psee_ caused his head to turn in search of its source. It was a falcon eyas, an actual falcon, or female, not a tiercel, or male, like he was, and from a different nesting pair too. She was a dark blue, while he was albino. She was a day younger. And apparently the storm had destroyed her nest as well.

Well, at least she could be a friend.

She toddled over to him and gestured, with a bob of her head, towards a large exit leading out to a huge, dry desert. In the twittering, screeching language of birds, she said, "If there's anywhere we can go, it's out there."

And so, they began walking out of the robot. By the time they reached the exit, the sun was setting, yet they still continued. Hunger, thirst, and exhaustion were plainly ignored. They huddled together as they walked in an effort to escape the bitter winds of the desert night. Then they saw him.

A somewhat battle-worn Vulcanus Glatorian was sleeping by the remains of a campfire barely a meter ahead. To them, he only meant one thing.

Warmth!

They toddled over to him as fast as they could and curled up behind his head, quickly falling asleep.

A/N: Alright, finally got this up. And for those who are clueless, a tiercel is a male falcon of any kind or age. Read and review please


	2. Chapter 2: Two Feathery Problems

a/n: Thank you **Mazula **and **Shatter Dave **for the reviews! Wow, two in a night! I didn't realize this was _that_ good! Well, now we have a new chapter, complete with Kewa Falcon fluff moments! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, just Zephyr and Aurora.

Chapter Two: Two Feathery Problems

Ackar had always been a light sleeper, thanks to his battle instincts. And he usually woke up of his own accord. But this time, a pair of small talons landing on and gripping his cheek were what started his day. At first he just kept his eyes closed and reached up with one hand, pushing the small bird off. Then it hopped back on.

Now Ackar was a slight bit annoyed. Couldn't it let him sleep until he saw fit? With a little more force this time, he reached up and pushed it off again.

And once more it hopped back on.

Now Ackar was pissed. No more sleep for him, all because of this one bird. Reaching around behind what he assumed to be its back, he grabbed and lifted the little eyas.

So, in response, it bit him.

That was **it.**

He sat up in a flash and lifted it right to his eye level - a Kewa Falcon eyas. A tiercel, by the looks of it, and albino. A second one hopped onto his knee - a dark blue female. Well, now he had a reason for heading back to New Atero.

••••••••

Matoro cast a sour look at the last book Turaga Dume had left him to help him adjust to being the Great Spirit: Life Bonds. Well, as long as it was the _**last**_one…

He opened it and began to read.

Table of Contents

1) Lifebonds and their purpose

2) Warning

3) Early stages of a bond

4) Tools given to a Great Spirit to let a Lifebond be safely secured

5) The day the Bond is made

6) Forming the Bond

7) Further stages of the Bond

8) Possibility of Offspring

As he saw the last chapter's title, it finally dawned on him just **how far** these bonds went, and he slightly paled. However, he had to read on.

Lifebonds and their purpose

A Lifebond is a bond a Great Spirit makes with the one he truly loves. And, as the name suggests, it never ends. The purpose of the Bond is to provide the Great Spirit with emotional support, as well as with someone who relies on him more than most.

_Well, _Matoro thought, _that's a bit blunt.___ He read on.

Warning

So far, no Great Spirit has been turned away by the one he chooses. If such happens, it is unknown what its effect on that Great Spirit will be.

At this point, Matoro was interrupted by a knock on his door. With a quick stretch, he sat up and answered.

"What is it, Berix?"

"I was asked to give you this note. It's from Ackar."

His curiosity piqued, Matoro quickly opened and read the letter.

Matoro,

I woke up this morning and found two orphan Kewa Falcons. Toa Hahli already adopted the little female, but the tiercel still needs a home. You know plenty about Rahi, so I thought it might do best with you. It's at my house if you decide to adopt.

Ackar.

••••••••

The frightened tiercel stayed as still as a statue as he perched atop the doorframe. Surely the scary Glatorian couldn't find him here! This hiding place was _**perfect!**_

Then the door opened and a Toa entered. Or wait… _was_ this really a Toa? It had full-grown feathers and wings, and seemed kind enough… maybe it could be his new playmate! Now for the perfect surprise pounce…

"What the-?"

Turns out that the Toa's mask was more slippery than he'd thought. Therefore, he ended up dangling upside-down in front of the Toa's face, with his talons just managing to grip the "eyebrows" of its mask. The Toa personally seemed quite startled - his bright green eyes took a minute to refocus on the little eyas, and even then he seemed at a loss for words. Then he slowly lifted his hands and detached the tiercel from his pure white mask, settling it to sit in his cupped palms.

The tiercel cocked his downy head to one side and twittered in curiosity at the Toa. He looked silly!

"I guess I'll have to give you a name now…. huh…"

A name? What was that?

"I know - Zephyr! Your name's Zephyr!"

Wait… so… Zephyr was basically who he _was_ now? Huh. Odd way to put it. But in that case, what was the Toa's name?

The tiercel's stomach growled. Forget about the Toa's name - where was the _**food?**_

__••••••••

Matoro sighed in relief as Zephyr finally quieted, having devoured a decent helping of Vorox jerky. It seemed he might have less leisure time than he originally thought. Well, at least now he could finish that book, since Zephyr had calmed down and actually seemed ready for a nap. Matoro already knew that his teammates would find this situation (stuck in an armchair with a textbook clutched clumsily in on hand as he tried to read it and the other hand being used as a bed by a napping Kewa eyas) quite funny… except for Hahli and Nuparu.

Nuparu… well, he and Matoro had been great friends as Tohunga _and _Toa, and the earth Toa had a good heart and mind, too… he was just very difficult to talk to when he was working on an invention.

Hahli… now _she_ was something else entirely. She had sympathized with him all throughout their time on both Voya and Mahri Nui. She alone had been able to see his spirit form. At one point, he'd had a private emotional breakdown in Mahri Nui and she'd found him, but instead of laughing or telling the others, Hahli had sat next to him and done her best to comfort him. She had always been his reason for not giving in. He considered her a great, great friend, but part of him considered her to be more special, more… _important._

Was this _love_?

Matoro snorted in self-disbelief. Probably just his new Great Spirit instincts urging him to choose a lifemate! He sighed and looked at the chapter he'd bookmarked for future reference. He might as well find out what had been left to help him.

A/N: Phew. Finally got this done. Well, Read and Review Please…


	3. Chapter 3: Back With The Team

A/N: Okay, this chap was hard to write through all my laughter. A _**LOT**_ of falcon fluffies in this one. Hope you enjoy! P.S.: Anything in * * is Nuju or another character birdspeaking.

Disclaimer: Only own Zephyr and Aurora

Chapter 3: Back with the team

"_Psee…_"

Matoro looked up from his most recent problem (a report of Malum raiding a trading caravan) to see what Zephyr was trying to tell him. The young tiercel was looking from him, to the door, then back to him again. Repeatedly. And Matoro was almost positive he saw the young falcon's right talon tapping the floor in a show of impatience. He sighed and went back to his work. _I'll make him some jesses* and let him ride on my shoulder when I finish this and turn it in to Ackar,_ he thought.

Zephyr was _**NOT**_ amused. Why wasn't his new Daddy letting him explore? He was _bored_! If he could just get Daddy to get up… Then his eyes alit on a thin chain with a clip-hook on each end.

And a brilliant plan formed in his mind.

He grabbed one end of the chain and marched right on over to the foot of Daddy's chair, then began to climb. Its back had plenty of decorative parts to use as talon holds, and he quickly reached the top. His Daddy was too busy to notice. Quickly he looped the chain once, twice, thrice around the little "arch" at the top, and clipped the end to the main part of the chain (failing to notice it was looped through Daddy's shoulder armor as well.) He used the chain as a way of climbing down, too. Then he saw the remote control Boxor his Daddy had left out. A perfect pulling machine! He grabbed the control-device and tucked it into the helm, sitting behind it as if it were a steering wheel. Having hooked the chain around the machine's torso like a harness, he had it charge forward.

Chaos then ensued.

His Daddy's chair tipped back and landed on the floor with a _thud_, causing him to let out a loud yell of "What the _Karzahni!_" in surprise. Then the Boxor kept going… and dragged both him and the chair straight out the door.

Two Words: **Not Good!**

Matoro was just hoping he didn't run into his old team in this humiliating predicament. He was **definitely** keeping a closer eye on Zephyr from now on!

••••••••

Hahli and the others were calmly chatting about a battle against a Skrall when they heard it.

"Zephyr, turn that thing off! **This is **_**NOT**_** funny!**"

Zephyr? Wasn't that what Matoro had named his little tiercel?

Then she saw the Boxor Prototype charging straight towards them, a chain around its body and a certain enthusiastic tiercel controlling it from atop its helm. Said tiercel's face lit up with glee upon seeing Aurora, Hahli's little falcon, who had been watching the entire proceedings from her perch on Hahli's shoulder.

"SCATTER!" Jaller yelled.

The Boxor ran through the gap they'd left and it was then that they saw Matoro being dragged along behind it against his will, constantly yelling at Zephyr to stop. Hahli and Nuparu looked at each other once, then back towards the chaos, and gave chase.

Aurora clung to Hahli's shoulder for dear life the whole time, letting out a tirade of indignant hisses and was Mama not being more _**gentle?**_ This ride made her belly churn!

••••••••

Nuju whistled a laid-back tune as the left his house, his staff clutched in his right hand as he wondered which prophecies might occur within the week.

Suddenly the sound of yelling reached his ears and his mind went on full alert. He looked left. Nothing. He looked right - _**HOLY KARZAHNI!**_

He leapt out of the way of the Boxor, watching as it dragged his former translator/assistant helter-skelter through the streets, the tiercel on its helm constantly cheeping with glee, Nuparu and Hahli chasing the whole procession in an effort to stop it while the latter's little falcon eyas clung to her adoptive parent's shoulder screeching quite the vocabulary of avian curses for one so young (he understood them because he'd learned their language.) Finally tiring of all the noise as the procession looped the block **yet again,** Nuju stood in the street and braced his feet against the rocky ground. When the whole group came around the corner towards him, he lifted his staff and literally screeched: *_**ENOUGH!**_*

He instantly saw the young mischief-making tiercel's face turn from one of glee to one of fear as his talon quickly pressed the button to stop the machine. Both Nuparu and Hahli stopped just in time, too.

*"Now,"* he said in both languages needed, *"Who caused all this chaos?"*

Aurora quickly pointed with one talon to Zephyr.

A/N: Okay, this part may be short, but our choir had a concert and that kept me from writing more for now. Read and Review Please…


	4. Chapter 4: First Pinfeathers & Reunion

Chapter 4: First Pinfeathers & Reunion

Matoro looked up from where he lay on his back in the street, his eyes instantly catching Zephyr's terrified expression and trembling frame. He began sitting up, but found that his shoulder armor was still chained to the now-ruined office chair. He looked up at Nuparu and Hahli.

"Um… a little **help**, please?"

••••••••

Hahli stepped back to let Matoro get to his feet. He'd be taking a while to get home; being dragged so roughly over the ground had left him with a sprained wing. She thought she saw him blush at one point, but wasn't too sure.

Matoro felt the part of him that had unusual feelings for Hahli practically _**purring**_ at her presence. He felt different now that he was a Great Spirit, almost as if he had new instincts.

"Umm… Thanks."

Hahli smiled. "No problem." She looked over to Jaller, who had just caught up with them.

"Well… at least you bunch stopped all this chaos."

Hahli couldn't help but blush.

Zephyr and Aurora were both confused as to why their Daddy and Mama's cheeks turned red. *What's up with them?* the tiercel of the two wondered aloud. *Haven't a clue.* the young falcon responded.

••••••••

Matoro paced in contemplation. What _were_ these feelings? Why hadn't they surfaced until _**now?**_ And why were they only awakened around Hahli? He looked across the room at where Zephyr was temporarily jessed to his perch as a type of time-out. The little tiercel most likely wouldn't know about such feelings himself at such a young age, so his well-practiced ability to talk to animals was wasted here. Or was it?

His mind drifted to Nuju. The Turaga of ice had taught him the Rahi language himself, and probably had plenty of experience of different emotions due to his age. They could also talk using the Rahi language as a means of privacy… Yes, that would work.

Zephyr caught his attention once more as he tried to chew through the jesses. However, he quickly drew back in disgust. This stuff tasted _terrible!_ **Blech!**

••••••••

Nuju didn't even look up from his studies upon hearing a knock at his door.

"Enter."

He had known from earlier that his former translator would want to talk about these odd "feelings" soon. *I had a feeling you'd want to talk,* he said, *and in a private manner. I only wonder about the _subject._* He smiled. *Care to sit down and explain your visit?*

Matoro silently sat Indian-style on the floor, trembling slightly from nerves, or so it seemed. Then he began. *Lately I've been feeling these… _**odd**_ emotions around Hahli. I've never felt them… well… _before_ I died, but now it's almost… almost as if becoming the Great Spirit has given me new _instincts._*

Nuju held up a hand to stop him from continuing. *If there's any word used to describe such emotions, it's a simple one: _love._*

Matoro gaped at him… and fainted.

••••••••

Zephyr paced on his perch in agitation. He was so… _bored!_ Suddenly, he accidentally bumped his tail against the wall, squawking in pain as the tip of his first pinfeather was squished. That _**hurt!**_

He scrambled away from the wall and looked at his tail in fright. What was that odd bump? Why had it hurt _so much?_ He suddenly saw one of his baby-down feathers fall off to drift lazily through the air and land on the floor. _He __**was FALLING APART!**_

Zephyr ran towards the door, tugging at his jesses in desperation. Where was Daddy? He was **scared!** This was a _**nightmare!**_ He needed Daddy to save him!

A scary-looking shadow passed over the window and he let out a shrill, screeching shriek, diving under the couch to hide. He heard the key turning in the lock, the opening of the door, and the clicking of metal feet on the tile before the door closed again and the sound of things being set down was heard. Footsteps. The monster was coming closer! His tiny, down-covered body began to tremble as a forked tongue of lightning rent the sky, matched moment-for-moment by a rolling clap of thunder. _Daddy, why did you leave? Was I too bad a tiercel earlier? Please, Daddy, save me!_ he thought.

His tiny heart froze with fear as a set of glowing green eyes peered under the couch and a large metal hand reached out and scooped him up. He waited for his end, his demise, but it never came. Instead, he heard a heartwarmingly familiar voice asking, "Easy, Zephyr, what's wrong?"

He quickly climbed over to his Daddy's shoulder and curled up in his "mane" of neck feathers, glad that he was safe at last


	5. Chapter 5: First Big Jumps

Chapter 5 : First Big Jumps

Zephyr stretched and looked at the new feathers on his tail and wings, flapping experimentally. He felt a sense of amusement as all his recently shed down was sent spiraling upwards, then back down to the floor, giving the room the appearance of a snowstorm. He hopped onto the table and flapped again, twittering happily as he watched the "blizzard". He felt another waxy tube fall away and reveal a newly-grown feather. Playfully, he turned and grabbed the keratin sheath, then tossed it off the edge of the table and watched it fall. That looked _**cool!**_

He watched a feather on the floor right below him as it moved a tiny bit. Huh… the breeze had settled already so why did the feather move?

Then he saw the Stone Rat poke its small, pink nose out, then its head. So _that's_ what caused the feather to move! Now, it was nearing lunchtime, and Zephyr had to eat plenty to keep up with his hyper, rough-and-tumble personality. So, he naturally decided the rat would make a good snack. It hadn't seen him yet… He readied his talons, leaned forward, and _**pounced!**_

The rat looked up and _ran._

Now, Zephyr was the type of hunter who focused more on his quarry's movement and let his own moves be second nature, so he **completely** ignored the fact that he'd just done a perfect pounce from a height of 2 feet (quite an accomplishment for a bird his size and age). Instead, he translated the rat's maneuvers into his own, running at a pace that grew to top the rat's despite it having an extra pair of legs. Around a stack of Kanoka, under an armchair, up onto a table, back down and off, past Daddy's feet and…

SNAP!

Zephyr could finally have his snack.

••••••••

Matoro sighed and looked over a letter he'd written out one last time. It seemed alright, with proper grammar, spelling, sentence structure… Yes, it would do. He reached over and picked up his pen, beginning to ink over the etched words.

Not a moment after he'd sealed the envelope did he feel a feathery weight clamber onto his shoulder. He sighed. "Hello, Zephyr."

The tiercel stayed quiet for a minute, content to simply observe the room from his shoulder while he read. Then the young bird stood once more and, quite suddenly, began to climb the side of Matoro's mask.

Matoro froze, as to not risk getting poked in the eye by a wayward talon. What was Zephyr trying to do? He'd never seemed interested in high perches before… So why now? The answer quickly became clear when Zephyr launched himself off of his head and leapt onto a table. The tiercel was trying to fly!

Matoro turned around to watch - just in time to see Zephyr attempt quite a clumsy landing and end up skidding across the table to crash onto the floor on the other side. He chuckled a bit at the silly sight of Zephyr peeking back over the edge of the table, a couple wayward feathers atop his head. Then the tiercel ran over to a bowl full of small blue, white, and silver polished pebbles that served as decoration. He hopped in and began digging through them, making small churring noises in his throat as he investigated this new shiny discovery. Suddenly his head darted up and he ran under the couch. That was odd. Had something scared him? If so, what had?

Apparently Matoro's theory was incorrect, because when Zephyr emerged again, it wasn't in a timid, wary, fearful way, but a happy, excited, cheerful way, with his beak full of shed down. What he was doing with it quickly became plain: he stood on the rim of the bowl and arranged the feathers over the pebbles for padding.

_Oh… he's making a nest!_

Indeed, this was true. Young Zephyr had soon gathered a bag of marbles, several inkless pens, a variety of bottlecaps, and what appeared to be an old doorknob. Matoro could barely stifle a laugh at the tiercel's odd behavior. The little guy was exploring every _**inch**_ of the room, making quiet sounds of surprise and curiosity as he found more "treasures". Matoro looked back at the book that he'd reread earlier and remembered one of the things he'd seen that had piqued his interest. It had been called a Bond Seal Amulet, and it had no specific form; each Great Spirit made theirs differently. It was apparently a handmade amulet that went around the neck of the one the Great Spirit chose as a mate, with a pendant in front that had personal meaning. It would painlessly join to the skin, and use the residual energy from the Great Spirit to give its wearer their own wings and feathers. This would trigger the emotional link between them and finalize it.

Before he knew it, he was dragged into a vision. A mass of glowing… _stuff…_ was constantly shifting in front of him, seemingly unable to decide what to be. He felt compelled to help it decide.

As if sensing this thought, it blew apart in a burst of light, forcing him to bring his arms up to cover his eyes. At last his vision adjusted and he found himself floating in an endless expanse of white light, interspersed with floating gems and chunks of metal. He began semi-consciously making something out of the floating objects. The finished Amulet was a sight to behold.

The centerpiece of it all was a blooming rose. Its bud was a brilliant diamond of dark blue and white with neon-green streaks adorning it like dew-beaded cobwebs at dawn. The stem was thornless, made of silver metal. A pair of Kewa falcons, one dark blue with white eyes and the other white with dark blue eyes, each held one of the two leaves. The chain was made of mythril, a neon-green metal.

Matoro's eyes flashed open to find himself laying in the armchair once more, except this time, the Amulet was in his hand. _At least I'm prepared now,_ he thought.


	6. Chapter 6: Flight at Last

**A/N: EXTREMELY sorry about how late this chapter is! Didn't realize I'd already gotten one written down that I just needed to type up!**

**Chapter Six: Flight at last**

Two months had passed since Matoro had made the Amulet. During that time, Zephyr had grown to adulthood. He was still working on his flight, sadly… Matoro was watching this "progress" quite earnestly, often unable to contain his laughter. This was often rewarded by Zephyr giving him a sharp slap to the head with one wing, by which time the laughter had subsided.

Matoro hadn't flown once yet, truth be told; he simply didn't have a _reason._ However, that was about to change.

••••••••

_**"HELP!"**_

Matoro's head snapped back to face the sky at the sound of the scream, his gaze scanning the heavens and his senses heightened by adrenaline as he searched for the source of the sound. What he saw was by no means a good omen.

Kotu, Vhisola, and Macku were caught in the clutches of a Nui-Rama swarm, miles above the ground. _**And the ENTIRE SWARM had infected masks.**_

"Kongu, how long would it take the Gukko Force to gear up and reach downtown Atero?" he asked via his comlink.

"About-around fifteen minutes. Why?"

"Dangit - that's too long." he said, and disconnected, leaving a very confused Toa Inika of Air on the other end of the line.

Matoro's mind raced, trying to think of **any** possible way to stop the swarm. Only one option was left standing.

He would have to engage in a mid-flight battle.

His wings spread, the feathers rustling in even the slightest breeze. He felt almost as if the gate to a new _realm_ was opening. Every movement of the breeze through his wings could be felt, and he could sense a strong force whirling towards him. The thermal raced beneath his wings as he ran forward, then… jumped!

He was flying.

_He._

_**Was.**_

_** FLYING.**_

__It was entirely new to him, yet, at the same time, it felt like he was born to fly! Every thermal, every downdraft, every gale… NOTHING went unnoticed. Now he **truly** knew the meaning of freedom.

He pivoted to catch an updraft and rushed forward towards the Rama swarm, occasionally flapping to keep himself steady, then banked, beginning with a swift approach towards the first Nui-Rama. As he made a knife-edge turn around it, he flung his arm outwards and yanked away the infected Kanohi. He snapped it in two and dropped the pieces into the sea as he flew towards his next target.

One of the Rama decided to attack him back. As he yanked out its Kanohi, it bit into his arm. Out came his sword as he hit the Rahi over the head with the hilt of said sword. It had the desired effect; the Rama was stunned, and he was able to yank both his arm and the Kanohi out of its jaws.

The third Rama tried to fly away, but Matoro saw this and dove after it. His wings were flattened to his back, the wind whistling in his ears; then they sprung open at the last moment, lifting him to zoom past the Rama, yanking off its Kanohi as he passed.

Hahli ran towards the scene in an effort to help. When she got there, she could only stare in open-mouthed awe at what, at first glance, would appear to be an angel descended from the heavens. It proved to be Matoro, the golden rays of the midday suns setting him aglow as he de-masked the rest of the Nui-Rama one by one. As the Rama flew off, they let go of the three Ga-Tohunga they'd been carrying, causing a moment of panic for the aforementioned trio - but the panic swiftly ended as Matoro swooped underneath them and caught them. He allowed them to gently jump off a few feet above the ground, while his own landing consisted of one of his wings sagging and catching on the ground, flipping him into a high-speed, bouncing barrel roll that sent him into the brambles nearby.

Hahli winced. _That's gotta hurt._

She jogged over to him and began pushing aside the were several muffled "Ow"s as the untangling went on, as well as several discarded feathers that were forced to part ways with Matoro's wings. Zephyr and Aurora both flew over to watch about halfway through, Zephyr extremely hyper from watching his "Daddy" fly and Aurora simply wishing the albino beside her would calm down.

Just as Matoro was finally untangled, Zephyr began to do the oddest thing. He grabbed a shiny pebble that lay nearby and began bobbing his head, flaring his feathers and emitting an odd trilling sound. His talons stamped the ground rhythmically as he shook his plumage, completely focused on Aurora.

It took a few moments for Matoro to realize exactly what the Kewa was doing. When he did, embarrassment flooded him and he covered his face with one hand. Zephyr was _**courting**_ Aurora.

Aurora, in all respects, looked rather impressed, even bending in for a closer look at the pebble.

Things were going to get a lot more complicated…

••••••••

The cyber-vulture watched and waited, his eyes fixated on the entrance to the cave.

At last he was rewarded - the female Muaka left her lair to hunt, and he snuck inside to steal a meal. He snatched the youngest cub and flew off with it, ignoring its yowling and kicking. He landed on a sandy dune and prepared to take the fatal bite…

A rasp from above caught his attention.

Rival vultures were circling overhead, sensing a meal. The vulture's ruby eyes widened in annoyance and it screeched its anger to the skies, still keeping one talon firmly planted over the Muaka cub. The cub in question yowled in a high-pitched tone from fear, already sensing the vultures' intention.

Suddenly all the vultures converged at once upon the cub, tugging it every which way, biting and clawing. The cub just wanted to be safe in the cave again with Mama, to cuddle up with Brother and Sister, to be saved from this nightmare!

Then it happened - if one had blinked they would've missed it - a flash of white swirled with gold leapt into the swirl of black. It was a lightning bolt among the stormy vultures, its cry ringing on the air like a clap of thunder as it leapt from one to the next, unstoppable in its might.

In under a minute it was over - the vultures lay unconscious on the ground, the gold-and-white Kewa standing over them, victorious. Its gaze turned to the still-cowering cub, and it gently picked the small bundle of black up by the scruff in its beak, then flapped, carefully minding its delicate cargo, to an oasis not far off. Leaving the cub in the shade of a broad-leafed palm, it turned towards the setting sun and flew to the Toa waiting upon the dune's ridge, the Toa with a glowing Iden.

_It shall be found by one of good heart, _the Kewa thought to his superior. _I already can foresee it._

_ Indeed, _the Toa thought back, _there shall be quite some confusion, but all shall pass in peace, in the end_


	7. Chapter 7: A Dark Turn of Events

**A/N: This one I went into a quick revision on towards the end, because I REALLY needed to start the MatoroxHahli factor in this story… This one's for all my loyal readers, to show that you're one of the things I'm thankful for, both as friends AND as faithful reviewers…**

**Disclaimer: I only own Zephyr, Aurora, and Soot.**

Chapter 7: A Dark Turn of Events _and _Love Kindled for Two Pairs

That night, Matoro's mind was plunged into a nightmare.

He found himself chained to a large slab of obsidian that stood upright. On either side of the slab was a large torch filled with black flames, the stand and holder of each made of millenia-old bones. In front of him was an immense black crystal glowing faintly red, deep crimson cracks forming a spiderweb over the front of it. Then he saw the silhouette of the being trapped inside.

It was the exact opposite of him.

It was pure black - no silver, no secondary colors - with leathery bat-like wings, as well as a ring of metal spikes at the base of its neck. It emanated an aura that disturbed Matoro greatly - greed, bloodlust, cunning, malice, spite, ego….

_**… Pure evil.**_

Suddenly Matoro heard the sound of a door opening behind him. A series of metallic taps was heard, the noise echoing off the walls of the large chamber as the one who'd entered came closer. A feminine laugh reached his ears as they stepped into the ruby light of the crystal, revealing it to be Roodaka. She looked up at him with a triumphant smirk, though the reason remained unknown to him.

"So much for you being difficult to catch. We found your dreamself simply drifting near here and dragged it in without you even noticing!" she proclaimed, her smirk widening. One claw reached out to trace his cheekbone and he flinched away as best he could, remembering the Vortixx's history of temptation.

Roodaka smirked at this, then turned away and began walking towards the crystal, reaching out and digging her taloned fingers into the cracks. The evil aura increased as she yanked a shard loose, her eyes glinting as she spoke. "My new master will soon have control of you… Teridax's legacy shall live on!"

_What the heck does she mean by that?_

Matoro's thoughts were cut short as Roodaka, quite suddenly, plunged the shard into his chest, right next to his heartlight.

His head snapped back and he screamed in pain, feeling the shard infect his bloodstream. It felt like millions of blue-hot knives had pierced his skin and heart, burning an eternal brand onto him. He saw a tremor shake the crystal and cracks spread up and down it before it shattered, its former prisoner taking to the air as its eyes, like burning stars on the brink of death, splotched with red and black, opened and stared balefully into his own…

He was home again, laying in his bed. Hahli was trying to wake him, Zephyr watching worriedly at his side. The Turaga stood nearby, also worried, and the rest of the team was watching from the doorway with concern.

His heartlight felt more erratic and weak than if he'd run a marathon after a triple-shot espresso, and sweat beaded his body, making his wings feel clumsy and heavy. His chest felt tight - suffocatingly so - and as he tried to push himself upright, his arms trembled and gave way beneath him. Every breath he took rattled and rasped worse than the boughs of a frozen hemlock in a winter gale.

A warm drink was pressed into his hands, bringing back the feeling in them. He felt dazed, unable to recognize or understand the happenings around him, trying to simply find solid ground for his thoughts, to steady his mind and make sense of everything.

A trickle of common sense found him and he took a sip of the still-warm drink. It had a faint taste of vanilla with a bit of mint as well, sweetened ever-so-slightly… It did the trick, though, and his chest loosened, allowing his breathing to level out. His mind began to acknowledge voices around him and could actually make sense of them now.

"…good thing Zephyr woke us all up…"

"…looked like he was having a seizure…"

"…all that from a nightmare…"

"…could've been a vision…"

"…ought to ask him…"

"…he's been through enough tonight as it is…"

"…the longer we wait, the less info we get…"

"…No. Let him sleep."

He took a larger gulp of the drink and felt his heartlight steady itself, finally managing to make his hands stop trembling. He felt Zephyr drop a moth onto his forehead in an effort to make him feel better and sighed, but stroked Zephyr's eye ridge all the same. After all, it was the thought that counted!

He felt a hand on his cheek and, looking up from the mug, found it to be that of Hahli. She had an expression of concern, and was watching him, unsure whether or not he was okay.

"I'm fine…"

"You've fooled us enough times into thinking that when you weren't."

He sighed again. She _did _have a point.

Without explanation, he felt Hahli gently scratch along his jawline, then just below it. That felt… _nice…_ Honestly, it was quite relaxing - soothing, even - and soon, he felt himself leaning into her hand, the caress relaxing him to the point where his eyes were closed and a gentle smile was tugging at the corners of his mouth. Then her hand went a few inches lower… and all he knew was _**bliss.**_

_** Pure and utter bliss.**_

His eyes rolled back and his brows relaxed, and, without warning, the purr every ice Toa has once they become just that - a Toa - found its way through his vocal chords and let itself be known, and known well. It was easy to hear, the sound similar to that of an idling chopper-type motorcycle mixed with a warble and the cooing of a pigeon, quite loud for a purr indeed. Loud to the point Hahli could feel the vibrations of it through her hand. Loud to the point where Ehrye, up to no good (though that was no surprise) and passing by on the street outside, could faintly hear it and paused to look around for its source, before shaking his head bewilderedly and continuing on his troublemaking way.

Hahli couldn't believe it. Was this all something new from him being a Great Spirit? Was he this relaxed just from her scratching that particular spot, or was it _because_ it was _her_ scratching it that he relaxed that much? He was leaning towards her to the point that his head was basically on her shoulder, and his feathers - both on his neck and wings - were "fluffed," the mug of concealed sleeping draught having fallen from his hands and spilled onto the floor. She noticed a feather in his "mane" that seemed somewhat loose, and, still continuing her scratching, gently reached over and slid it free, the feather having been ready to fall out anyway. His purr seemed to increase in volume slightly, and, not thinking any harm of it, she continued. She didn't know it, but for a Great Spirit, it was their lifemate that would help preen their feathers, pulling out ones that were ready to molt and pulling off the keratin sheathes of pinfeathers that had finished developing. So, preening was, in a sense, a very tender and, in a way, _intimate_ thing for a Great Spirit to let someone do for them - it meant they had a _very_ special place in that Great Spirit's heart. Thus, Hahli preening Matoro was bringing the two even closer together. Between the two, a spark of love had ignited.

Looking over at the Turaga, Hahli was surprised to see that Nuju actually had taken a _video camera_ out and was recording the happenings.

"How long ago did you start recording?" she asked in a whisper, not wishing to wake Matoro, who had fallen asleep with his head on her shoulder and his face buried in her neck, still purring nonstop.

"When he first started relaxing with your help." Nuju replied, also in a hushed tone, "I never want to forget this… _and _it's good blackmail." He slightly smirked at the last point.

Hahli sighed and shook her head slightly, but then yawned as she realized how tired she, too, was. Her legs were complaining quite noticeably about being cramped from standing so long, and Nokama, noticing this, made Nuju turn off the camera and brought a comfortable chair over for Hahli to sit on ("I believe that we all can agree on it; He's going to need you to stay with him tonight."), then bade her good night and made sure the other Turaga and the rest of the Inika left as well, leaving a Toa, a Great Spirit, and two Kewa falcons alone in the house.

Looking over at Zephyr and Aurora, Hahli was surprised to see that the two falcons were both snuggled together in the nest Zephyr had made **(mentioned in Chapter 5)** and actually sharing a few pieces of meat. She shook her head and looked back at Matoro again, then, without thinking, bent her head down and kissed him on the cheek. He muttered something in his sleep and buried his face in her neck even more, causing a faint giggle to escape Hahli. She yawned once more, then noticed something lying on the headboard of Matoro's bed. Reaching out, she picked it up and brought it towards her for a closer look. An odd amulet depicting two Kewa falcons of blue and white with a rose of similar colors held between them was what her sight revealed, and, confused as to what it was from or for, she looked back down at Matoro. At the moment, the still-purring Great Spirit could offer no answers, still asleep with his face buried in her neck. She sighed and held onto the strange pendant. She'd just have to ask him in the morning.

It was as she fell asleep that she noticed a comforting scent emanating from Matoro; it brought to mind pine trees laden with snow, riding on the back of a winter wind, the gentle thaw of spring. That was the last she thought of before she dreamed…

••••••••

As Nuparu walked across the sand of the desert to return home, a faint mewl reached his ears and he cast his gaze about in search of the source. At first all he saw were the familiar dunes of his "home turf," but then he noticed a small patch of black slowly approaching him. Upon closer inspection, it proved to be a Muaka cub, lost and far from home. Barely even a week old, by the looks of it. It pawed his foot and, before he could stop it, curled up atop it and fell asleep.

_Well… I guess I'm camping out tonight…_


End file.
